


Happy Holidays

by Eighthofhearts



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas Party, Dinner, F/M, First Meetings, Fluff, Friendship, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-26
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-09-11 03:06:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8951491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eighthofhearts/pseuds/Eighthofhearts
Summary: "Alexander knew his first winter in the states would be rough, but he hadn’t expected this... Alexander felt the tendrils of his old depression sneaking under his skin. He had to be proactive, he decided. It was time for things to change."





	

**Author's Note:**

> A secret santa gift for @soulsearchingalltheway on Tumblr, hope y'all enjoy it :D

Alexander knew his first winter in the states would be rough, but he hadn’t expected this. He knew the New York City winds would be bone chilling compared to the warm Caribbean air, but coupled with the coldness he felt within, it was almost unbearable. Sat alone in his studio apartment, Alex huddled close to the nearly century old radiator, bundled from head to toe in his heaviest winter clothes. Still, a frosty air seeped through his clothing from the supposedly tightly closed windows. Despite having a good book in his lap and a mind cleared of the worries of back home, Alexander still felt melancholic. He looked around his bare apartment, where he had spent much of his time over the last three months since his arrival, and sighed. What kinda life was he making for himself? Sure, he was getting his education, but he had no life outside of school. Winter was a bad time of year to be lonely, and Alexander felt the tendrils of his old depression sneaking under his skin. He had to be proactive, he decided. It was time for things to change. 

///

The walk from his apartment to the local bar should have been easy, but the nearly thirty miles per hour winds were making it quite a chore. Soon enough, he arrived at the Harlem Public, a joint he’d heard some guys in his finances class talk about. The bar had a warm feel to it, lightly packed with a mixed crowd of college students and others tired from their long day at work. Despite the small crowd, there was still some room at the bar. Alex shook off the cold and briskly walked forward. 

He sat at one of the tall bar stools, stripping himself of his scarf, but opted to keep his warm beanie on. He looked at the array of bottles and drinks menu behind the bartender, a nice looking young guy, and decided on his drink.

“Hey,” Alex called, trying to get the attention of the somewhat busy bartender, “can I get a peach bourbon iced tea? Hey, hey man!”

After a moment, the bemused bartender finally paid some mind to Alex. The man looked at Alex and cocked an eyebrow, “Can I see some ID?”

Confused, Alex pulled out his wallet and freed his hand of his glove with his teeth so as to grab his school ID. He handed the card off to the bartender, who tossed it back with a huff. “Nice try, bud, but I can’t serve a minor.” 

“Minor, what are you talking about?” Alex whined, grabbing his ID before it slid off the bar, “I’m nineteen.”

“Yeah, a minor. Come back when you’re twenty one,” the bartender responded before turning to another customer.

Deflated, Alex pocket his wallet, grabbed his scarf and glove and made his way back towards the entrance. 

“Hey wait,” a voice called as Alex readied himself by the front door. He looked up and saw a tall man, who he had seen at a table near the bar, bounding towards him. The man stopped in front of him, a soft frown on his face. “Sorry for eavesdropping, but I couldn’t help but hear what happened at the bar. That bartender didn’t have to be such an ass about that.”

Alex shrugged at the man, not quite sure how to respond. Why was this man talking to him? Surely, he had other people to be sociable with. 

“Why don’t you come join my brother and I?” The man nodded in the direction of a table near the bar, another similarly bulky man sat at it, “We got some food and you look like you could use a hot drink.” 

“Oh no no,” Alex stammered, continuing to put his scarf on, “that’s really very nice of you, but I don’t wanna intrude.”

“Intrude? I’m the one who offered,” the man said with a toothy smile.

“But I don’t even know who you are,” Alex added sheepishly, feeling like a small child beside the older man.

“Hercules Mulligan,” he replied, extending his large hand out to Alex, “Most people call me Herc. That over there is my brother, Hugh. Nice to meet you, son.”

Alex eyed Hercules’ hand before hesitantly accepting it, “Alexander Hamilton, but, um, can you call me Alex?”

“Of course!” Herc responded, clapping his hand against Alex’s back to lead him towards his table, “Hugh, this is my new friend, Alex.”

Hugh looked up from his drink, a subtle, but warm, smile plastered across his face. “Nice to meet you, Alex,” Hugh said, his tone a lot softer than his boisterous brother’s.

Alex took his seat at the table, and made himself a bit comfortable.

“So Alex,” Herc began, taking a swig of his drink, “Why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself?” Herc paused, sensing Alex’s hesitancy, “Where are you from? I’m guessing you’re not from these parts based on what happened at the bar.”

Alex nodded, pursing his lips slightly, “Yeah, from the islands, Nevis originally, but ended up in St. Croix as of a few years ago.” He paused, noting the plate of fries on the table. Herc nodded at for him to take one, pushing the plate forward. He continued as he carefully picked at the food, “I just moved to New York about three months ago. Haven’t really gotten out much since getting here… Actually, I think this is my first night out since moving here.”

Hercules’ eyes widened, “You’re kidding? What’s been eating up all your free time?”

Alex shrugged, throwing another fry into his mouth, “Mostly school. Just finishing up my first semester at Columbia, been a rough ride trying to keep my scholarship.”

“No kidding, you go to Columbia? I went there a number ‘a years ago myself. What’cha studying?”

Alex couldn’t really believe quite what was happening. Just ten minutes ago, he was alone, being kicked out of a bar, and now he was sitting with two friendly guys, eating some fries and feeling pretty good. He looked up at Herc, who was waiting for an answer, “Oh, um, law.”

“So you got quite a head on your shoulders then,” Hercules smirked, taking another sip of his drink.

“I guess you could say that,” Alex muttered timidly.

“Come onnn, don’t sell yourself short, man. You’re in New York, going to Columbia and it’s nearly Christmas, you should be happy,” Hercules paused suddenly, “Hey, I know what’ll cheer you up, I’ll go get you that drink you ordered before. My treat, and I won’t hear anything against it.”

Before Alex could protest, Hercules was already gone, leaving Alex alone with Hugh, who had barely said two words.

“I’m sorry about my brother.”

Alex jumped at the sound of Hugh’s voice, “Um, what?”   


“Herc, sorry about him, he can be a bit much, especially after a few drinks,” Hugh replied with faint smile, “If you wanna head out before he gets back, I can cover for you.”

“Oh no,” Alex interjected, looking over to the bar to see Hercules struggling to get the bartender’s attention, “It’s fine, really. It’s actually nice.”   


“Okay,” Hugh nodded, tightening his lips, “If you’re sure, man. I just didn’t want him making you uncomfortable or nothing.”   


Alex shook his head, “If anything, this is the most comfortable I’ve felt since arriving in New York. If ya can’t tell, I’m not much of a people person, at least at first, so making friends hasn’t been the easiest. Your brother swooping down on me was actually pretty great, it feels nice to have a proper conversation with some guys and just feel, ya know, warm.”

Hugh smiled in response, opting not to ruin the moment with any other thoughts. Alex continued to pick at the food until Hercules arrived moments later, a round of drinks in hand. Alex nodded and murmured a thanks in Herc’s direction.

With the aid of several rounds of alcohol, the night seemed to speed by in an instant; by its end, Alex felt like he had known the Mulligan brothers for years. At just after midnight, Alex looked at his phone to check for messages, and was surprised to find it was so late.

“We’ve been talking for three hours?” Alex said louder than he had intended.

“What can I say?” Herc leaned back in his chair, a wide smile spreading across his face, “I’m just a great conversation partner.”

“I really should start heading back,” Alex stood, readying himself to leave, “I got an 11am class tomorrow, and it’d really help if I was awake for it.”   


“No problem, man,” Herc nodded, “Do you need me to call you a cab or something? It’s kinda cold out there.”   


“Thanks but no thank,” Alex replied, wrapping his scarf tight around his neck, “I’m only a few minutes walk away.” Alex sighed contently, looking at the two liquored up brothers, “Thanks for everything tonight, guys, it really meant a lot.”

“It’s no problem, man,” this time it was Hugh who chose to speak up. “Like we said, we knows what it feels like to come to a new country and feel like an outsider.”

Alex responded with a nod and a warm smile, “You guys get home safe.”

“You too!” Herc called out as Alex walked towards the door.

Alex left the bar with a wide smile on his face, something he hadn’t quite expected on when he entered earlier in the night. He thought his best case scenario was getting a drink and maybe trying to chat up some hot person who was way out of his league at the bar. Instead, he left that night feeling warm and with two new friends. The three had exchanged numbers at some point in the night and Alex definitely intended on hitting the brothers up. Perhaps with this new boost in confidence, Alex considered even talking to some people at school. Maybe, maybe not, he thought. Right now, he was happy with the two new friends he had in his life. 

///

Over the next couple of weeks, there was a steady stream of conversation between Alex, Hugh and Herc. Most of the stuff they talked about was nonsense. Alex mostly complained about studying, Herc would talk about his tailoring business and Hugh would chime in every once in a while with a witty remark or even a funny cat photo. Talking to the boys was one of the highlights of Alex’s day, it felt nice to actually have someone who wanted to talk to him. 

On a surprisingly warm afternoon, while getting ready to head out for a late Friday class, Alex received a text. Unsurprisingly, it was from Hercules.

_ Hey man, got any plans tonite? _

Alex quickly typed his response.

_ No what’s up? _

Alex continued to ready himself, knowing it might take a moment for Herc to respond. A few minutes later, as he reached his apartment door to leave, his phone vibrated again.

_ Hugh’s makin dinner tonite, wanna join us? _

Dinner tonight, Alex thought, that might be nice, considering his dinner plans thus far was a frozen dinner alone in his apartment.

_ Sounds great, want me to bring anything? _

Hercules responded almost immediately.

_ Just your wonderful self :) _

Alex smiled and went to pocket his phone as he left his studio, but received another text. 

_ Dinners @ 7, see ya then _

///

Alex got back from his classes at around 5:00pm, leaving him a good amount of to shower and change into something nice. The day of classes had been quite arduous, but Alex survived and now had the whole weekend to look forward to. A nice, long, steaming shower did wonders for his aching back muscles, which has only tightened over the course of the stressful day. After stepping out of the shower, he quickly changed into his favorite warm, knit grey sweater and a pair of nice looking jeans. Alex wasn’t looking to impress anyone, but still felt he looked nice. After he gave himself a quick once over in the mirror, Alex tossed on his coat and was out the door.

Spending three months living on the A line, Alex knew to give himself nearly forty minutes to get to Herc’s place, when the trip was only 5 stops. Surely enough, Alex needed the extra time, as he had just missed a train as he got into the 145th street station. The wait thankfully didn’t seem to drag on and Alex was able to arrive at his destination at just before 6:30. 

Alex pulled out his phone as he walked down 103rd street, checking again for the address of Herc’s building. He soon found the apartment complex, and rang the appropriate bell to be let upstairs. Even though Herc’s apartment was on the sixth floor, Alex opted to take the stairs and bounded up them quickly. He was feeling a little winded once he reached the floor, but got over the feeling quickly. He walked down the long line of identical looking doors until he found the right apartment. Alex knocked and waited.

He could hear a muffle of voices from inside the apartment, but could not distinguish who they belonged to. Soon, the door swung open and a man who Alex did not recognize appeared. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Alex stuttered, “I, uh, think I have the wrong apartment.” Alex went to take out his phone to check the apartment number again, but the other man stopped him.

“Are you Alexander?” the other man asked with a warm smile. 

Alex was surprised to hear the accent in the man’s voice, a thick French one if he wasn’t mistaken. He realized he had been silent for too long and was looking bewildered at the tall man, “Oh, uh, yeah. I mean, I prefer Alex, but… yeah.”

“Oh, of course, my apologies, Hercules did tell me that,” the man responded, ushering Alex inside the apartment, “I am Gilbert de Lafayette, but please, call me Lafayette.”

“It’s very nice to meet you,” Alex smiled a bit timidly as he was led in. He hadn’t expected others at the dinner, but it certainly wasn’t unwelcome. As Lafayette led him into the living room, he noticed Herc sat at the rather large brown couch and another man who he did not recognize sat in a chair beside him. The two men, who had been mildly chatting, stopped when Lafayette and Alex walked in. 

“Alex,” Herc beamed, jumping up and embracing the smaller man in a hug, “Good to see you, man! I can see you’ve already met Laf, and this over here,” he gestured to the smiling freckled man off to the side, “is John Laurens. Hugh’s still in the kitchen making dinner. Can I get you anything to drink?”

Alex smiled, loosening his scarf, “I’m good, thanks.”

John stood and offered his hand to Alex, which he quickly took, “Nice to meet you, man. Herc’s told us a bit about you.”

“Yes, our dear Hercules here has had quite a lot to say about his new friend,” Lafayette added with a chuckle. 

Alex smiled at the other men, taking a seat beside Herc on the couch. “So,” Alex began, clapping his hands and rubbing them together, “since you guys know a bit about me, how about you guys tell me a bit about yourselves?”

Before either man could talk, Hugh appeared in the living room, looking a touch tired. Alex perked up at the other man’s arrival, standing and preparing himself for the inevitable hug. “Alex! I thought I heard you come in. I hope these idiots haven’t been bothering you too much,” he gestured to John and Lafayette with a laugh. 

John scrunched up his nose, looking a bit annoyed, “We’ve barely said two words to the guy. Chill, man.”

“Just wanted to make sure y’all weren’t corrupting the young guy or nothin’,” Hugh retorted.

“I think I am younger than Alex,” Lafayette added with a shrug, “But that is neither here nor there. We were only just introducing ourselves, Hugh. No need to be so worried.”

“Riiiight,” Hugh responded, rolling his eyes, “says the guy who got my brother shitfaced in less than an hour on his last birthday. The same guy who isn’t even legally able to drink in America.”  

“I do not know what ‘shitfaced’ means, so I will choose not to incriminate myself by staying silent,” Lafayette tutted, turning away from Hugh.

“That’ll be a first,” Hugh snorted, “Anyway, y’all don’t get too comfortable, dinner should be ready in about twenty minutes.” 

Hugh returned to his duties in the kitchen, letting the guys get a little more comfortable with each other with some light conversation. The group all bonded over the fact that no one was a native New Yorker. Lafayette’s accent gave away the fact that he had only recently immigrated, moving from Chavaniac, a town in southern France, just about a year and a half earlier. Alex decided to test his somewhat rusty French skills by holding a small conversation with Lafayette and was pleased that he didn’t completely embarrass himself. 

Then there was John, a born and raised southerner, who came to New York around the same time as Alex. He had a soft drawl in his voice and held himself in such a way that Alex knew he wasn’t from the area. He had a slight transfixion with the man and decided quickly that he wanted to get to know him better. Before Alex could get into any in depth conversation with John, the group was called in for dinner. 

The four men stood and followed the aromatic trail leading to the dining room, where they found Hugh scooping a serving of his stew into each of their dishes. Alex took an end seat, sat between John and Hugh, who was at the head. Once everyone was comfortably seated, the group began to dig in on the hearty meal. Soon, a slow murmur of delight grew over the men as the soft vegetables and juicy meat passed through their mouths.

“My compliments to the chef,” Alex quipped after taking a hearty mouthful of the stew.

Hugh smiled and nodded in response.

As the dinner progressed, the conversations that had been halted in the living room resumed, including Alex attempts to talk to John. The general feeling over the table was one of warmth and friendship, and best of all, Alex felt welcomed and even at home. Despite feeling like an outsider to these men who have all clearly known each other for quite some time at first, he now felt like he was one of them. He liked the way Lafayette told his anecdotes, sometimes lapsing back into French for some jokes, which was charming to say the least. Most things about the man were quite charming. Alex also enjoyed how Herc was so attentive to every person, smiling and laughing at every story and every joke, even if there was a language barrier for some of them. Alex thought the way that Hugh attended to all the guests needs for food and drink was noteworthy, it was more than him just being a good host. He may not have known the Mulligan brothers for long but he definitely could see they were a caring pair. Finally there was John, who Alex began to see a bit more of once the wine was passed around. His smile was a bit looser and he looked more relaxed. It was good to see everyone happy.

As the dinner drew to an end and the men filled with food and wine tired out, the once excited conversations had simmered down to pleasant chatting. 

Lafayette leaned forward in his chair, bracing himself on the table with his elbows, “Herc, I meant to ask you earlier in the night, but are you having your Christmas party again this year? Last year was quite fun, from what of it I can remember.” 

Suddenly Herc sat up, alert, “Oh shit, I totally forgot about Christmas!”

“Fool, how do you forget about Christmas?” John slurred, the last bits of his wine downed in a single gulp.

“I didn’t really forget, it’s just this year has been so crazy,” Herc admitted, “Okay, there will definitely be a Christmas party, and you are all definitely invited.” Hercules looked at Alex, “You especially, young man.”

“Why are you singling me out?” Alex asked, giggling through a look of affront.

“Because after all the depressing shit I’ve heard about your life over the last few weeks, I know you could use a good Christmas.”

Alex had to admit, Herc was right. Christmas had never really been the best time of year for him, the only good memories he had from that time of year were long behind him. Perhaps making some new memories with his friends might be a good idea.

“I’ll be there with bells on.”

///

It wasn’t long before the holidays drew closer and closer, and Herc’s annual Christmas party arrived. Alex stood in his apartment getting ready for the night. He donned the forest green blazer that he and Lafayette had picked up on a recent shopping trip and a dressy casual pair of slacks. For once, he wore his hair down and even styled it a touch. Sure, it might look disheveled by the time he got to the party, but at least he put in an effort. 

Soon enough, Alex was back at Hercules’ apartment, and was happy to be with his friends. He hung around John and Lafayette for most of the party, as Herc and Hugh were too busy with other guests and being good hosts. Soon Lafayette ran off on his own, wanting to be the social butterfly that he was. He was left with John and around him there was a sea of faces that he didn’t know. He wanted to talk to someone new, but what was he to say?

After about an hour or two into the party, Alex began to feel a bit antsy, and John could notice by the way the other man moved.

“You alright, man?” John asked, leaning against the arm of the full couch.

“Yeah,” Alex huffed, a little agitated, “Just, ya know, there’s a lot of people here that I don’t know and it’s just…”

“Weird?” John interjected.

“Not really… but yeah,” Alex replied.

“Hey, I totally get it, it’s a lot to deal with,” John leaned forward, placing a friendly hand on Alex’s shoulder, “if you need to take a breather, that’s totally fine.”

Alex shook his head, “No no, I’m cool.”

“Here,” John said standing upright, “Lemme go get you a drink, that’ll help loosen you up.”

Before Alex could protest, John was off in search of their beverages. Alex looked around at the apartment, packed to the brim with people. Despite being well over capacity, there was still room for the rather larger tree off in the corner, which Alex took to admiring. Squeezing through some of the other guests, he walked a bit closer towards it to examine it a bit better. 

“It’s quite pretty, isn’t it?”

Alex was startled by the sudden voice beside him. He looked up and saw a young woman stood next to him, her face and shimmery dress aglow in the soft, ambient light of the tree and surrounding fairy lights. 

“Oh um, yeah,” he smiled nervously, “Herc and Hugh certainly put it together quite nicely.”

She smiled happily at the tree before turning back to face Alex, chuckling a bit under her breath.

“What? Did I say something funny?” 

“Oh um, no,” she replied, reaching forward, “You just have a little tinsel in your hair.”

Alex blushed as he reached to get the tinsel himself, bumping hands with the lady as she grabbed it and handed it to him. “Thanks,” he muttered, nervously playing with the silvery bit of decoration, “I’m Alex, by the way.”

“Elizabeth,” the woman replied, “but you can call me Eliza.”

Alex thought of many things he’d liked to call her, beautiful and sweet were just the tips of the iceberg. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Eliza,” Alex replied, looking up and down from his feet.

“Is something the matter, Alex?” Eliza asked as her face fell a touch.

“No no, just, ya know, nerves,” he admitted.

“Well, you have no reason to be nervous around me,” she smiled warmly, coaxing him to meet her gaze, “here, let’s go into the kitchen and get away from all this noise.”

Eliza took Alex’s hand and led him through the crowd to the more quiet kitchen, which was only occupied by one or two people refilling their drinks. 

“Much better now, isn’t it?” 

“Yeah,” Alex smiled, “I can actually see how beautiful you are now in this lighting.”

Alex regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth, groaning and feeling like an idiot for even thinking of saying that to this woman who he had only just met. But Eliza reacted kindly, smiling and blushing at the compliment.

“That’s very nice of you to say,” she replied, nervously playing with her hands.

Alex went to speak up, but was interrupted by a large hand landing on his shoulder.

“Alex, my boy,” Hercules boasted in his slurred speech, “I see you’ve met Ms. Schuyler.”

Eliza smiled timidly at both men.

“Good to see that you two are hitting it… oh!” Herc jumped suddenly, looking above the two, “Would you look at that?”

“Wha… oh,” Alex’s heart sunk as he realized he and Eliza were stood under some mistletoe.

Herc snorted, “Lafayette put up a bunch of these around the house to ‘spread the holiday love’. He just wants an excuse to kiss a bunch of people.”

Alex looked back at Eliza, wide eyed and seemingly equally as shocked. She laughed a bit nervously, “I mean, if you’re not opposed to it…”

“Oh, uh, not at all,” he stammered his reply.

Eliza smiled widely before leaning in and laying a soft kiss on Alex’s lips, Alex inadvertently placing a soft hand on her cheek in the process. When the pair broke apart, Alex’s hand was still on Eliza’s cheek. It sat there for a moment too long before he pulled it back, laughing nervously. The kiss was nice. No, it was more than nice, it was great. Alex felt warm all over and knew he wanted to kiss Eliza again, but he hesitated, not wanting to overstep. 

Eliza quickly leaned back in, taking Alex into her arms as their lips met again, this time a little less nervous and a bit more passionate. 

“Wow,” Alex whispered as they pulled apart.

“Yeah,” Eliza replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Awwww,” Herc boasted, “Well, aren’t you two the cutest? I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone now.”

Alex watched as Herc disappeared back into the crowd, turning back to Eliza only once he was completely gone. He smiled at her, feeling the most comfortable he had since arriving at the party. Looking at her and taking in what might come of this night, Alex thought that perhaps the holidays weren’t going to be so bad after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> Come yell at me on Tumblr @BeyondTheSunrise


End file.
